1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to a cool air supply system for refrigerators and, more particularly, to a cool air supply system capable of guiding cool air from the freezer compartment of a refrigerator to the refrigeration compartment door, thus allowing the cool air to be discharged from the door into the refrigeration compartment for rendering the inner temperature of the refrigeration compartment uniform.
2. Description of the Prior Art
FIGS. 1 and 2 are views illustrating the construction of a typical refrigerator.
As shown in the drawings, the typical refrigerator 1 is divided into two compartments, i.e. the freezer and refrigeration compartments 2 and 4, by a barrier 5 filled with an insulating material. The freezer and refrigeration compartments 2 and 4 are provided with doors 2d and 4d, respectively. In addition, a plurality of, preferably, four baskets 14 are mounted to the inner wall of the refrigeration compartment door 4d in a multistage manner.
The cool air circulation of the above refrigerator will be described below.
As shown in FIG. 2, a liquid refrigerant, having low temperature and low pressure, is quickly vaporized in the evaporator 6 while absorbing heat from air in the interior of the refrigerator 1, thus forming cool air to be circulated in the refrigerator 1. The cool air is partially discharged by a blower fan 8 into the freezer compartment 2 passing through a shroud 12. At this time, the remaining cool air is discharged into the refrigeration compartment 4 through a refrigeration duct 10. That is, the cool air primarily and freely flows down into the refrigeration duct 10. Thereafter, the cool air is discharged into the refrigeration compartment 4 through a plurality of discharging holes 10a which are formed on the front portion of the refrigeration duct 10.
After a time, the cool air, supplied to both the freezer and refrigeration compartments 2 and 4, develops a warmer temperature. That is, the low temperature of the cool air is transmitted to food and drink in the freezer and refrigeration compartments 2 and 4, thus forming warm air in both compartment 2 and 4, respectively. Such warm air is introduced to the evaporator 6 through first and second return ducts 2a and 4a, which are provided in the barrier 5.
However, the typical refrigerator is problematic in that it is somewhat difficult for the cool air to evenly circulate in the refrigeration compartment having a large volume as compared with the freezer compartment having a small volume.
In a brief description, the cool air is only discharged from the refrigeration duct 10 to the refrigeration compartment 4 through the discharging holes 10a. As a result, the temperature of the inside portion of the refrigeration compartment 4 is higher than that of a portion around the door of the refrigeration compartment 4. Particularly, when the door 4d of the refrigeration compartment 4 is repeatedly opened and closed, the temperature around the door portion of the refrigeration compartment 4 rises because hot air is introduced from the surroundings into the refrigeration compartment 4. Therefore, it is difficult for the refrigerator to maintain the freshness of the food and drink in the baskets 14.